The UN has claimed credit for its role in influencing the Botswana government to increase spending during the 2024/2025 financial year.
Finance Minister Peggy Serame's budget proposal of P102 billion is a historic high, according to some observers.
This information is detailed in the recently released UN Results Report for Botswana. Minister Serame stated that the P102.28 billion budget includes P72.61 billion for recurrent expenses and P29.77 billion for development projects.
In her speech, Serame also acknowledged the ongoing support of Botswana's development partners, noting that their assistance over the years has helped the country achieve its developmental goals.
According to the report, through the Integrated National Financing Framework (INFF) and SDG Financing Initiative, the UN has successfully influenced the government to allocate more budgetary resources toward social sectors and the SDGs.
"The 2024/25 budget represents a 23.5 percent increase compared to the previous year's budget, with significant increases in education and human development, health, sustaining livelihoods, research and development, and infrastructure development," the report states.
The UN also mentioned that to support the informal sector, a revolving fund with an initial capital of approximately US$14 million has been established to boost entrepreneurship.
While the additional fiscal expenditures by the government are a positive step toward investing in the SDGs, the UN emphasizes the need for continuous monitoring of progress. Achieving sustainable development is challenging and requires unwavering dedication and a commitment to ongoing improvement.
"In line with the Government's call for a 'mindset change,' the UN leadership in Botswana has committed to reflect on our mindsets and provide feedback to the government and other development partners on optimizing our collective efforts," the UN stated.
The UN explained that "Mindset Change," or "A re chencheng" in Setswana, requires deep introspection, respectful challenges, robust debates, and a clear vision of future goals.
Regarding Botswana's position among its upper-middle-income peers, the UN noted that while the country performs well on some indicators, such as terrestrial protected areas (percentage of total land area), it struggles with higher unemployment levels and fewer seats held by women in the National Parliament compared to the UMIC average.
"There are other indicators where Botswana lags behind its peers, such as the maternal mortality rate. In general, Botswana's social indicators (i.e., health, education) and poverty levels are significantly worse than those of its peers. This presents a paradox," the UN stated. While Botswana is an upper-middle-income country with low debt levels and a high average income, it also faces high unemployment, poverty, and inequality. Moreover, education and health outcomes do not reflect the level of spending in these sectors.
The UN also highlighted its role in women's economic empowerment, particularly through supporting the Government's implementation of the 2017 National Response Strategy to the US-African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) and the 2023 Temo Letlotlo program.
"The Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) was assisted in developing the National AGOA Response Strategy to help Botswana maximize the AGOA trade initiative's potential. The Strategy aims to revitalize the Buy Botswana program and encourage local producers to supply the market at competitive prices and quality," the UN stated. In 2023, women entrepreneurs benefitted from the government's restriction on importing school uniforms, initiating textile projects to supply schools in their communities.
"The Strategy has boosted employment creation, increasing the number of jobs by 38 percent, from 2535 in 2022 to 3500 in 2023. Before the import ban, local traders imported school uniforms, exporting employment opportunities that could have benefitted local community members," the UN reported. It added that one of its agencies, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), supported the government's launch of the inclusive agricultural production program, Temo Letlotlo, which creates economic opportunities for women through commercial farming.
